Vegetable-binder.



' c. E. FERRELL.

VEGETABLE BINDER.

APPLICATION FILED APR-8.1913- l 9 1 @Qfi g Patented July 11, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

\X/ITNEEEEE INVENTEIF (I. E. FERRELL. VEGETABLE BINDER. APPLICATION FILED APR.8.J9I3.

Patented? July 11, 1916,

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

q 7 v 15 E 9 W WITNEEE E5 INVENTEIR fiwn/bgkfl ill? tra ers;

Specification of Letters Itatent. I

vs'crmaemmama Patented July ii, rare.

Application filed April 8, 1913. Serial No. 759,666.

To all 1072/0772 it may concern Be it known thatl, CHARLES E. FERRELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oklahoma, in the county of Oklahoma and State of Oklahoma. have invented a new and useful Vegetable-Binder, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accon'lpanying drawings.

This invention relates to a machine for binding and tyingflbunches of vegetables, such as onions, .radishes, spinach, turnips and so forth; cutting away the surplus tops, and counting thebundles.

It is an object of the invention to produce these operations in their proper order automatically by power and to embody the invention in a simple and practical ma-. chine.

()therobjects of the intention will appear from the further reading of the following specification: I i i v The machine shown in the drawings is one of the practical embodiments of the invention, andwhile a clear, exact description of the machine will follow, it may be here stated, that, so long as the spirit of the invention is maintained, various machines may be constructed ,whereby to embody that invention.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of a machine,[showing a needle, a knotter, cutters, andf means for actuating the same, acord box and cord tensioning device, and other parts desirable to a complete machine. Fig. 2 is a partly disassembled plan view. Fig.1}? is an elerational view of a set of cutters. Fig. tis a plan view thereof, with a gage v mechanism associated there with. Fig. ,5 is a perspective view of a knotter. Fig. 6 is a detail view of an element thereof, and Fig. 7 is a partly sectional view of said knotter,

Intheseviews similar characters of reference will indicate similar parts.

A general. framework, stand, which may be employed or omitted, and which is designatedin a general way by standards 8 and 9, abase10, and a cross bar 11. This framework supports a table 12 to which is secured arms 13 and let in which is journale'd a shaft 15 carrying a wheel 16. Upon this same shaft 15 is a sprocket wheel 17 that is operated by a chain 19, and a corresponding sprocket wheel 18, the latter being journaled as at 20, in a cross-bar 21, that reaches from the underside of the table comprising a needle 27, so that as the two segments 23 and 24C cooperate, the needle'will lift and the arm s ueeze the bundle into shape for tying, while the cord is tensioned about the bundle and the knot tied by the knotter.

The lmotter may be of any suitable kind, such, for instance, as that granted to one Charles.Calahan. a'ranted on June 7th, 1892,

Number 476,519. In this knotter 28 represents the pivoted knotter jaw, for casting the cord to a knot making position, and 29 is its friction roller. A depression 30 is made in the upper portion of the jaw on a line with its pivot and extends in a plane parallel therewith to the outer point of said jaw. A flange 32 on the knotter for guiding; the cord is provided, and there is also a cord guiding flange 33 that in its revolution forces the cord downon the finger 34;. A knotter jaw is rigid with a knotter shaft 36 that is borne by a gear 37, and this gear is intern'iittently operated to turn the knotter at sequences, by a gear 38 carried by the wheel 16. V

The cord 89 is placed into a cord holder 40, at the proper moment by a stroke of the needle, at which time teeth 41 on the wheel 16 will cause the cord holder to rotate, by passing into the notches i2 and this cord is delivered into a housing for the same designated by 44 so that as the needle 26 recedes from engagement with the knotter, a loop isformed into which to lay the next bundle. Thus, when the wheel 18 is operated, after placing the bundle. the needle will elevate and the wheel 16 will rotate until the teeth 38 come into contact with the teeth of the gear 37 when the knotter will take the cord from the needle and make the knot, after which the needle will drop back to its original position for repeating operation.

On the shaft 20 is an arm 45. to which is connected a link 46 and this link is connected to an ear 47 that depends from a movable outter 48 that is adapted to cooperate with a stationary cutter 49, and each of these cuttersis disposed upon graduated bars 50 I e I provided with a seat 58..v

and 51, so that they may be adjusted to vary the height of the bundle they are to trim. As the needle advances bringing the cord over the bundle, the cutter also advances at apredetermined distance from the point of tying and this cutter 'c hops'the tops from f the bundle and produces a trimmed bundle. Suitably associated with the shaft is a counter 52, and each time this shaft rotates and thus ties a bundle, the counting device is made to register the same. This may-be donein any suitable manner, of course. In

the present instance the counter may be actuated by a finger proceeding from the shaft 15. A cord box 53 is provided, and in as sociation therewith is a tension device 54 and the cord proceeding therefrom is subject to such tension as will make the knotter I form the knot close to the bundle, and thus prevent the elements thereof from being lost. For the'purpose of automatically and predeterminedlystopping the fly or treadle r wheel 55, after e'achtying operation'the-periphery of wheel 55 is indented as at 63, into which takes a beak 60, carried by a lever 61,

having a foot piece 62. This'lever 61 is pivoted to the frame 8, and' bears on the beak whichn'is normally in position to catch the -detent each time the wheel comes around.

When release is desired, the lever is lifted and the wheel is free for operation. 6 For the purpose 'of operating the device the wheel erate and cooperate with the knotter, which in turn is being operated by wheel 17. The

7 bundle is placed on the table, the needle arm flbundle. During the entire operation the 26 embraces it, the cord is tensioned about the bundle and the cooperation of the nee- .dle, knotter and'cord gives a properly tied cord is under tension, and each successive operatlon causes the needle to advance and retract to tie the bundle already placed and make room for the new one.

; What I claim as new is 1. A vegetable binding machine, comprisble, means for operating the knotter, a needle shaft, a gravity controlled needle, an arm operating sald needle, :a segment on said" needle shaft. a driving shaft, an arm revolvgravity, an arm for operating said needle, a

segment connected with said needle shaft, a driving shaft, an arm carried thereby, a

segment carried by said arm and adapted to cooperate with the segment on the needle shaft to intermittently operate the needle to cause it to cooperate with the knotter, and means to operate the shaft;

3. A vegetable binding machine comprising a table, a knotter mounted upon said table, means for operating the knotter, a needle'shaft, a needle, a curved arm carrying said needle, a segment mounted on the needle shaft, a driving shaft, :1 wheel on said shaft, a treadle-wheel, a chain for transmitting motion from the last named wheel to the first named wheel, an arm on said shaft, a segment on said arm and adapted to cooperate' with the segment on the needle shaft, topping cutters adapted to operate to cut the tops from the bundles, means for operating the topping cutters, and means for holding the cord tight while the needle and the knotter operate.

4. A vegetable binding machine comprising a table,'a knottercarried thereby, means for operating the knotter, a needle shaft, a gravity returning needle adapted to cooperate with the knotter, a curved arm for the needle, and adapted to press the bundle together, a segment carried by said needle shaft, a driving shaft, means to operate said shaft, an arm revolving with the shaft, a segment carried by said arm, and cooperating with the needle shaft-segment to force the needle to an operative position, cutters operatingto cut the tops from the bundles while the same are bein tied, means for operatin the cutters, and means to hold the cord tight while the needle and knotter operate.

In witness whereof I have this 4th day of April, in the yea-r nineteen hundred and thirteen, placed my name before two subscribing witnesses. ing a table, a knotter mounted upon said ta- 2 CHARLES E. FERRELL.

Witnesses:

-W. W. BARURELS, Jnssn F. CURRY.' 

